With fall comes days dedicated to baking, and these Gluten-Free Pumpkin Banana Muffins are amongst my favorite fall baked goods.
While I absolutely LOVE to bake, I don’t usually create my own recipes for baked goods. Baking is very sciencey where cooking is more like art, and I have an artist’s brain that does not do well with scientific things. When cooking I can throw things together, taste, tweak and then set my dish free into the world. With baking, measurements need to be precise, and if the finished product doesn’t taste good, not much can be done with it except maybe feed it to the squirrels. So I was quite pleased with myself when I put together this muffin recipe and found that the baked muffins were very tasty! (I will admit that I started with an omnivorous recipe for gluten-filled pumpkin bread, but I made so many changes that it barely resembles the original thing.) After making these muffins, my kitchen did vaguely resemble a science lab that had recently experienced a horrible accident, but the muffins were worth the mess!
These muffins are perfect for a grab-and-go breakfast or a mid-afternoon snack with a cup of strong cinnamon tea.
Pumpkin Banana Muffins
Pumpkin Banana Muffins are the ultimate autumn treat! Made with pumpkin puree, cinnamon, and pecans, they're full of the best flavors of the season.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup natural creamy peanut butter
- ¼ cup apple sauce
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 cup mashed banana (about 2 large or 3-4 small)
- 2 tablespoons plain, unsweetened almond milk (or your favorite non-dairy milk)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup brown rice flour
- ¼ cup tapioca starch
- ¼ cup potato starch
- ¾ teaspoon xantham gum
- 3 teaspoons flax meal
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 350° degrees. Line two muffin tins with paper muffin liners (you’ll need 18 liners total) or spray them lightly with oil.
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In a medium bowl, combine the peanut butter, apple sauce, maple syrup, pumpkin, banana, almond milk, and vanilla.
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In a large bowl mix together the brown rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, xantham gum, flax meal, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt.
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Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture. Combine until just mixed — do not over mix. Gently fold in the pecans.
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Scoop the mixture into the muffin tins so that they are about ¾ full.
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Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
O hai. I heard you had some pumpkin muffins for me?
I feel the same intimidation with coming up with my own baking recipes. I have a list at home of ideas for new and creative baked goods that sadly, have yet to become tangible goods. It is intimidating to even start because if it doesn’t come out great the first time, then you’ve done all the work for a mediocre result. I give you extra credit for coming up with a gluten free and vegan recipe that works!
Thanks, Jessica!
I know what you mean- baking is very intimidating! I usually shy away from coming up with my own recipes. But when you come up with one that works, it’s that much more rewarding isn’t it?
These look gorgeous! Thanks for sharing on Healthy Vegan Friday!
Thanks, Gabby!
These look lovely, Dianne! I am just learning about gluten-free baking, so I’ll have to give these a whirl soon.
Thank you so much, Dynise!
Yum yum and more yum! I love the squirrel picture! 🙂 Too cute! Thanks for linking up at our Gluten Free Fridays party! Thanks for helping get our party kicked off this week! I have tweeted and pinned your entry to our Gluten Free Fridays board on Pinterest! 🙂 I hope that you’ll join us this week! Cindy from vegetarianmamma.com
Thank you, Cindy! I have another great recipe lined up this week!